Match Recap: Nashville 1, Union 0: Late Penalty Sinks Philadelphia
Mukhtar’s 101st-Minute Penalty Hands Union Second Straight Loss
Nashville — A lack of chance creation and finishing plagued the Philadelphia Union once again, as they suffered a 1-0 loss to Nashville SC due to a late penalty kick goal by Hany Mukhtar in the 101st minute. Nashville became the first team this season to defeat the Union in both home and away fixtures. With the victory, Nashville leapfrogged the Union in the Eastern Conference standings, moving into second place (12-4-5, 41 points), while the Union dropped to third (12-5-4, 40 points).
Head coach Bradley Carnell made four changes to his lineup from last Sunday’s match against Columbus Crew, with Olivier Mbaizo replacing Alejandro Bedoya, Jakob Glesnes replacing Jesús Bueno, Cavan Sullivan replacing Ben Bender, and Chris Donovan replacing Markus Anderson. Andre Blake retained his spot in goal. Mbaizo, recovered from an adductor injury that sidelined him from the starting XI in recent games, returned to the lineup. Glesnes, back from suspension, joined Olwethu Makhanya and Kai Wagner to form the backline. Jovan Lukić shifted to his natural No. 6 role, pairing with Danley Jean Jacques. Indiana Vassilev and Cavan Sullivan, the latter making his first-ever start for the Union after playing a career-high 45 minutes against Columbus, operated as the two No. 10s. Bruno Damiani and Chris Donovan started up top.
Andre Blake was called into action early, saving a shot from Hany Mukhtar in the 15th minute. Edvard Tagseth played a cut-back pass to the center of the 18-yard box, where Mukhtar was unmarked. Mukhtar’s second effort, after collecting the rebound, struck the post, keeping the game tied at 0-0.
In the 24th minute, Bruno Damiani’s effort was cleared off the line by Jeison Palacios after a cross from Kai Wagner. Palacios headed Wagner’s cross poorly, allowing the ball to fall to Damiani, who struck it on the volley toward Joe Willis’ right post. Willis was beaten, but Palacios recovered to head the ball off the line.
The Union and Nashville went into halftime tied at 0-0. Nashville had the best chance with Mukhtar’s saved shot and post-hitting follow-up. Nashville led in shots 8 (2 on target) to 4 (1 on target) and possession 63-37%. The Union entered the break without conceding for the 15th time this season but failed to score in the first half for the 10th time.
Five minutes into the second half, the Union created the first chance, with Chris Donovan’s effort saved by Joe Willis in the 50th minute. Jakob Glesnes played a long ball to Kai Wagner on the left sideline. The ball was worked to Olivier Mbaizo on the right, who sent a cross to Bruno Damiani. Damiani flicked it to Donovan, whose shot was saved, keeping the score at 0-0.
Nashville responded in the 51st minute with a corner kick from Hany Mukhtar. The ball deflected off Kai Wagner and fell to Patrick Yazbek, but Andre Blake came off his line to block the effort, preserving the scoreless tie.
Bradley Carnell made his first substitutions in the 61st minute, bringing on Ben Bender and Tai Baribo—the latter making his first appearance since May 31 against FC Dallas—for Cavan Sullivan and Chris Donovan.
In the 63rd minute, Nashville’s Jonathan Pérez received a straight red card after kicking Tai Baribo in the head during a challenge on a throw-in from Kai Wagner.
Carnell made his third change in the 72nd minute, substituting Alejandro Bedoya for Indiana Vassilev.
The Union countered in the 86th minute, with Olivier Mbaizo leading the charge alongside Alejandro Bedoya on the right. Bedoya crossed into the 18-yard box for Tai Baribo, whose shot was inadvertently blocked by teammate Danley Jean Jacques.
Two minutes later, Kai Wagner struck the left post with a long-distance free kick in the 88th minute, leaving the game tied at 0-0.
In the 97th minute, Daniel Lovitz launched a long throw-in toward Teal Bunbury, which Olivier Mbaizo flicked backward to Hany Mukhtar. Olwethu Makhanya tackled Mukhtar, and referee Rubiel Vazquez initially waved off penalty appeals. After the Union lost possession, a floated ball re-entered their penalty area for Bunbury, who laid it off to Ahmed Qasem. Qasem’s shot was saved by Andre Blake. With play stopped, Vazquez reviewed the earlier challenge via VAR and awarded Nashville a penalty. Mukhtar converted in the 101st minute, giving Nashville a 1-0 lead.
The Union had one final chance in the 102nd minute. Ben Bender crossed from the left toward the back post for Bruno Damiani, whose header was cleared by Nashville, resulting in a corner kick. The corner led to a right-footed shot from Danley Jean Jacques, which missed the target.
With the 1-0 loss, the Union suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time this season under Bradley Carnell. It’s been over 270 minutes since the Union scored from open play, marking their second scoreless streak in consecutive games this season.
Key Moments
15’ | Andre Blake save on Hany Mukhtar.
50’ | Chris Donovan shot saved by Joe Willis.
63’ | Jonathan Pérez straight red card.
88’ | Kai Wagner hits the post off a free kick.
101’ | Hany Mukhtar penalty to give Nashville a 1-0 lead.
Cavan Sullivan’s First Career Start
After playing a career-high 45 minutes against Columbus Crew last weekend, Cavan Sullivan made his first career start against Nashville SC. At 15 years and 280 days old, Sullivan became the second-youngest player in MLS history to start a game. He played 61 minutes, recorded 22 touches, completed 5 of 12 passes, won 3 of 3 tackles, and 5 of 6 aerial duels.
“We tried to roll Cavan out in a little bit more of a wingback position with the ball,” said Bradley Carnell after the game. “He got one or two looks in the first half where in a transition we can start creating something.”
“Cavan's a natural counter presser of the ball. So he's busy, these experiences are good for him. And it can also, on the other side, just calm everybody down because yeah, there's a lot of hype around Cavan and at times he gets muscled off the ball, which is totally natural. So he's not quite there where he needs to be from a physical standpoint, but he's a very talented kid and I think this was a good indicator of where Cavan is.”
Sullivan had appeared in six games for the Union this season, totaling 96 minutes before this match. Carnell’s decision to start Sullivan made sense, as the Union sought an offensive spark after creating only eight chances in their last two games (four per match), well below their season average of 11.5. Defensively, Sullivan was solid but couldn’t provide the offensive boost Carnell had hoped for.
Union Tie Their Lowest Scoring Stretch of the Season
The Union have scored just one goal in their last three games, a penalty kick by Bruno Damiani against Chicago. This marks the second time this season they’ve managed only one goal in three games, the first being against Inter Miami, Orlando City, and NYCFC, when they went 0-2-1. After that stretch, the Union embarked on an 11-game unbeaten run, which ended last weekend against Columbus Crew.
Injuries to players like Frankie Westfield, Olivier Mbaizo, Mikael Uhre, and Tai Baribo, along with Quinn Sullivan’s absence due to international duty, have challenged the Union. Despite others stepping up, the team has struggled recently.
“It's just natural,” Carnell said of the scoring drought. “We're going through a couple of things right now, which, if anyone expects for us to go through unscathed throughout the season, then you haven't been around the league long enough. We know the sort of difficulties around the league with all the congestion, what's going on, and the May stretch that we had.”
The return of Tai Baribo, who played over 30 minutes against Nashville—his first appearance since the FC Dallas match—offers hope. Quinn Sullivan’s return after the CONCACAF Gold Cup final between the United States and Mexico should boost chance creation.
“I’m happy to get the training rhythm back, to get the competitive nature back, and, to be training exactly how we need to be training,” said Carnell. “So I think that's a big part of it to get back to who we are and get up back on the training field.”
The Union’s next three MLS matches include home games against New York Red Bulls and CF Montréal, and a trip to Houston Dynamo. With Red Bulls and Houston in eighth place in their conferences and Montréal in last in the East, the Union have an opportunity to start another unbeaten run, especially with key players returning from injuries and international duty.